


When the Smoke Clears

by Gazoonia



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Depression, Grief/Mourning, Guilt, How Do I Tag, Post-Battle, and short, like holy fuck, this is so old
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-19
Updated: 2019-03-19
Packaged: 2019-11-24 12:46:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18165380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gazoonia/pseuds/Gazoonia
Summary: Levi reflects on the Survey Corps' latest battle.





	When the Smoke Clears

It was dull. It was cold. The howling wind ripped through his clothes like a blazing fire, cutting through his skin and chilling him to the bone. It made his cloak jerk and writhe, and his usually tidy hair was working its way into a mess that only the turmoil in his mind could rival.

Before him laid the bloodied, torn carcass of a comrade whose name he'd never learned. It was only this broken stranger and the broken man standing over them left in this world. At least, that's how it felt to the raven-haired captain despite the other soldiers moving around him; cleaning up the remains of a battle that couldn't be called a victory despite being won.

His face held a blank expression. It was nothing out of the ordinary, really. He was not renowned for making his emotions apparent, so none of the others approached him over it. But his mind was spinning, boiling and bubbling like a kettle that had been filled to well above its maximum capacity.

This whole situation was his fault and he knew it. He had given the order to keep moving forward despite the fact that the expedition had already fulfilled its purpose. There had been no need, yet he had thought that if they could move on... if they could just get a little further...

He shook his head as if it would dislodge the thoughts clawing viciously at his mind. He had a job to do at the moment as a captain, which meant that thoughts and feelings went out the window. He would let these emotions chip away at him when he was in the safety of his office tonight as they did every night.

But for now, he returned to the surviving members of his group, head held high and body language calm and collected as always.

**Author's Note:**

> That night: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18165437


End file.
